Melbourne Fringe 2012

How to get Rich

0 Comments 04 October 2012

Online dating doesn’t have the stigma associated with it that it once had, but what if rather than meeting your partner on eHarmony, you met them on Facebook? And what if you’re only just about to meet them in person for the first time, five months after you started Skyping, and you’re flying across the world to do it? Written by Aleisha McCormack and directed by RocKwiz’s Julia Zemiro, How to get Rich is a comedic play based on McCormack’s real-life decision to travel to London to meet her boyfriend of five months face-to-face for the first time.

McCormack shines in this one-woman show in which she plays Aleisha, a caricature of herself. Set on the flight from Melbourne to London, How to get Rich tracks Aleisha’s gradual descent into panic as she imagines the worst possible scenarios that will greet her at Heathrow. Initially, Aleisha comes across as an amusing, but ultimately annoying character when it’s established that she is definitely not the kind of person you want to find yourself sitting next to on a 23-hour flight. However, through a clever script and McCormack’s convincing performances of lesser characters, the audience is soon invested in Aleisha’s campaign to “get Rich” (as in Richard), hoping that it doesn’t all go awry.

McCormack proves herself a chameleon, convincingly and humourously conveying a number of characters during the hour. Choice props and costume pieces are also effectively used, helping to immediately identify individual characters.

The minimalist set, featuring a pair of red aeroplane seats and a television,  acutely captures the feeling of international economy travel, which is further assisted by lighting changes and PA announcements from the flight attendant. The in-flight entertainment displayed periodically on the television is also used to great comedic effect, playing the role of Aleisha’s Jiminy Cricket.

The genius of this play is how accurate and identifiable so many of the characters’ views and actions are, which makes it exceptionally funny. While many of us haven’t travelled across the world for someone we met online, we have all taken risks and dreamt up crazy ramifications for our decisions. We all know someone a little bit like Aleisha’s gossiping aunt, or have had a horrendous time sleeping in economy. To an extent, we can all relate. How to get Rich features a great performance, bikini waxes from Hell, kidnapping, ABBA, caps abuse and just a little bit of swearing – really, something for everybody – making it a thoroughly entertaining ride from start to finish.

How to get Rich runs until 7 October at the Trades Hall – Annexe. Tickets are $22 full-price or $18 concession (group tickets are $18 per person for 5 people).

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